Considering a few cheap brushes.

Hi everyone, I'm new to the forum and fairly new to wet shaving. A few years ago I realized that I have fairly sensitive skin (not too bad, but enough to where I stopped using cartridge razors and started trimming for work). Recently I started a job that requires your usual suit, tie, and clean shave...so I picked up wet shaving...and boy am I glad that I did. Anyhow, that's a bit about me.
I am now looking for a cheap brush under $20. I may invest in something nicer down the line, but I am hoping I don't have to. My current brush is a Van Der Hagen (came with a $13 kit). It does the job, but I feel that something is missing. Can anyone suggest a decent quality, sub-$20 brush?
Here are a few that I have been considering:

Omega 10066
http://www.westcoastshaving.com/Omega-10066-Boar-Shaving-Brush_p_470.html

Omega 10275
http://www.westcoastshaving.com/Omega-10275-Banded-Boar-Shaving-Brush_p_518.html

Escali 100%
http://www.amazon.com/Escali-100%-B...8&qid=1422462580&sr=1-1&keywords=badger+brush

Delong
http://www.ebay.com/itm/shaving-bru...655?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a42b4a20f

Any other suggestions?

Any Omega or Semogue boar/badger that you like the design and knot size of and that fits your budget. You can't go wrong.

I have the 10066 and it has been great

I have the 10066 and 10049 and they are great performers. A lot of guys have great things to say about Semogue brushes but I have no experience with them so can't say one way or the other. I just know that any Omega brush will be better than you VDH.

llred said:

I have the 10066 and it has been great

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+1

So an Omega boar over one of the cheap badgers (Escali and Delong)?

Amen, brother. I would avoid the DeLong. Just not a name that I know and the Omega or Semogue choices are bulletproof.

Polarbeard said:

Any Omega or Semogue boar/badger that you like the design and knot size of and that fits your budget. You can't go wrong.

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SamDE said:

So an Omega boar over one of the cheap badgers (Escali and Delong)?

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Never tried them, but from what I've heard from others the answer is yes. A decent Omega or Semogue boar will beat a cheap badger any day.

Thanks guys, now its between the Semogue 830 and Omega 10066. The Omega is half the price, but the Semogue just looks nicer!

I completely agree with the Omega boar brushes. I started with a 49 and keep a B&B Essentials in my rotation. While I've not used a Semogue, you hear almost nothing but good things about them around here.

Let me throw in another alternative: horse hair. The character is somewhere between badger and boar, and you can pick up a very good Vie-Long one for right around $20.

The bottom line is that you can get a number of very good brushes at or under $20, but not one with badger hair. "Inexpensive" does not mean "cheap" when dealing with boar or horse knots.

Check out Virginia Sheng brushes on ebay. I believe the store is Virginia Shaving & Beauty. You can get a nice badger for under $20.00. I certainly have enjoyed mine. I purchased it after reading all of the positive reviews here. It does come on the proverbial slow boat from China; it will take at least 3 weeks to arrive.

Welcome to B&B!

Among your choices, I would recommend against the very low quality and poor value Delong and Escali. I would personally choose the 10066. I own the 10065, the colorful sibling to the 10066, and it's a very solid boar brush for a low price.

However, if you could increase your budget to the $30-35 range, you could purchase substantially better brushes than those you listed. In this price range, I would suggest a Whipped Dog silvertip badger, that would be far and away substantially softer than your current VDH or the Delong or Escali.

Another great option is the L'Occitane Cade synthetic brush by Plisson. At $30, it's one of the best synthetics currently on the market. It's not currently listed on L'Occitane's website, but it common for it to appear and reappear in-stock. The brush should also be available in many of the L'Occitane boutiques in most malls.

If you want to go with a boar brush, you might also consider a Semogue 1305. It's a classic.

Whatever you choose, if you purchase from a B&B vendor, do not forget to look for or inquire about discount codes!

llred said:

I have the 10066 and it has been great

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+1. It took a little longer to break in than some of my other boar brushes, but it is excellent.

Thanks again. I think I am going to go with the 10066. Whipped Dog looks promising...I may have to bump the budget a bit.

SamDE said:

I am now looking for a cheap brush under $20. I may invest in something nicer down the line, but I am hoping I don't have to.

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Please make follow up posts from time to time. I would like to meet the individual who will always keep his brush purchases under a certain amount. I was 'that guy' and I failed miserably, meaning I have a lot of nice brushes. And an Omega 48...oh, that was my point, I recommend an Omega 48! Good luck!

@SamDe Being that I currently have several of the brushes you are considering, I would go with the Delong BUT I would look for a synthetic from that seller you list in your opening post.

The first two brushes in pic are from that seller, I also have 48 and 49 but the first brush on left is MIRACULOUS!
View attachment 544247

I found a source on eBay (Heisheng1983) who seems to have a lot of brushes to unload. He represents them as slight defectives, or just plain cheap, Frank Shaving (FS) or who-knows-what brand; pure, fine, and silvertip badger, $2.00 to $12.00. I already have a pricey AoS pure badger. In a bid to get another brush in rotation, I just ordered one from that Heisheng1983 fellow, coming on the slow boat from China, to arrive whenever. If his brushes are genuinely FS, those are rated as unbeatable for the price in reviews all over Internet. If he is selling some knock-off then I am only out $5 or so for a shot at a silvertip. If the $5 product performs as well as, or better than, the far more expensive one, then he will be the #1 source for my collection.

Other than the Virginia Sheng, IMO there really isn't a decent badger choice at the sub-$20 price point. So, that means boar, which isn't a bad thing at all. Any Omega will be a major upgrade from your VDH. Once broken in, good boar is good enough to be the only brush you'll ever need. Not, however, good enough to be the only brush you'll ever want .

GoneRetroInOH said:

I found a source on eBay (Heisheng1983) who seems to have a lot of brushes to unload. He represents them as slight defectives, or just plain cheap, Frank Shaving (FS) or who-knows-what brand; pure, fine, and silvertip badger, $2.00 to $12.00. I already have a pricey AoS pure badger. In a bid to get another brush in rotation, I just ordered one from that Heisheng1983 fellow, coming on the slow boat from China, to arrive whenever. If his brushes are genuinely FS, those are rated as unbeatable for the price in reviews all over Internet. If he is selling some knock-off then I am only out $5 or so for a shot at a silvertip. If the $5 product performs as well as, or better than, the far more expensive one, then he will be the #1 source for my collection.

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I just did a search for Heisheng1983 and nothing came up. Are you sure that's his name?

Semogue 1470 is the best value I've encountered in my years of wet-shaving on a budget.

Omega 10066 is also a good one, though.